... partners, government officials and media professionals from across the U.S. came to see what makes Michigan agriculture so special!
Conservation in Action Tour 2022
St. Louis, Missouri
Our 15th annual Conservation in Action Tour was extra-special for several reasons—it was the first opportunity to bring people together after two consecutive pandemic-era virtual tours, and it was a celebration of CTIC's 40th Anniversary.
We kicked off the program in the Trolley Room of the Forest Park Visitors Center with a celebration of CTIC's four decades of bringing people together around conservation farming systems. Among our speakers that evening were Rod Snyder and Bruno Piggott of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Herndon of Field to Mar ... more. |
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Conservation Technology Information Center's Conservation in Action Tour
Join us on an unforgettable tour of South Dakota!
May 6-7, 2025
Sioux Falls
Start your 2025 growing season off right by exploring conservation agriculture in the Great Plains! The 18th Annual Conservation in Action Tour is showcasing South Dakota. It’s a unique planting season tour that will focus ... more. |
... (CREP)
Demonstration Projects
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)
Grazing and Rangeland
Hypoxia
Know Your Watershed
Leadership
Mississippi River Basin Initiative (MRBI)
No-Till
National Aquatic Resource Survey (NARS)
National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI)
Nutrient Management
Operational Tillage Assessment System (OpTIS)
Pasture
Ridge Till
Soil Health
Strip Till
Tours
Training
Water Quality
Watershed Groups Watershed Implementation and Innovation Network (WIIN)
Weed Management
Wetlands
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... and professional networking events for Indiana's conservation stakeholders, and to connect those stakeholders with extension agents. Events were held in 2019 and 2020.
Watershed Leadership Forums
A series of forums gathering leaders of watershed projects from around the country yielded a treasure trove of best practices for both conservation and leadership.
Conservation in Action Tours
For more than a decade, CTIC has organized annual summer tours that provide perspective on regional resource challenges and a close-up look at innovative conservation practices. In addition to technical insight and dozens of outstanding speakers, every Conservation in Action Tour provides some of the best networking in the conservation agriculture space, bringing together a wide range of peopl ... more. |
... more!
NEW this year: a special mixer for the next generation of conservation agriculture champions! Bring a young colleague, the new person in the office, an intern or a student. After all, the future of conservation agriculture is about more than crops: it’s about people, too.
Another new addition to the 2023 Conservation in Action Tour is 2 different, optional tours on Monday, July 10, 2023. Attendees will have the chance to choose between the following:
Following professionals from Star of the West through 3 of their mills, discussing the conservation, farming, and consumer angles every step of the way.
An inside look at the Cass River Restoration Project. Located in the heart of Frankenmuth, at the Cass River Dam, Frankenm ... more. |
... Tour is hosted by CTIC with the support of our Tour Sponsors:
Evening Social
John Deere
Diamond
Bayer CropScience
Monsanto
Platinum
Dow AgroSciences
Syngenta
The Fertilizer Institute
Click hereto see a complete list of 2017 Tour sponsors.
Why attend the Tour?
This is one of the most well-organized multi-stop tours I've ever been on - I'm hoping to take some of your great ideas and implement them.
~Anonymous, 2016 Tour Participant
I loved every second of the tour. Networking and meeting new people, experiencing the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), learning new facts and being inspired by the passion of the EAA researchers and growers all contributed to making the tour an incredible experience ... more. |
... and Greens and Vollmer Farms and Certified Crop Adviser
Please join CTICas we focus on the Vollmer-Sander's farm and what makes conservation stick!
Register for the American Society of Agronomy's Sustainable Agronomy ConferenceHERE
ClickHEREto see the program for the day and more information.
For more information on our past tours, view ourarchive page.
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"Conservation in Action" Tours
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Demonstration Projects
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Conservation Practices
View album
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... a wide range of practices, from prairie strips to bioreactors, interseeded cover crops, stover harvesting, drainage water management techniques, and precision application of fertilizer. The tour also includes lunch at New Century FS and dinner and a keynote speaker at Jester Park Lodge in Granger, Iowa.
Bayer, Mosaic and Syngenta have sponsored previous Conservation in Action Tours. The Conservation Infrastructure Initiative signed on this year specifically to expose tour participants from around the country to conservation systems being employed in Iowa.
The Fertilizer Institute and Corteva Agriscience have signed on as a Platinum sponsors.
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... and former chair of Iowa Land Improvement Contractors Association (LICA)
Omar de Kok-Delgado and Tim Youngquist, Iowa State University
Lee Tesdell, Iowa farmer and prairie strip pioneer
Sean McMahon, Executive Director, Iowa Agricultural Water Alliance (IAWA)
Shawn Richmond, Environmental Services Director, Agribusiness Association of Iowa
and more.
"Our Conservation in Action Tours bring together speakers from across agriculture, from farmers to regulators, agribusiness leaders, researchers and representatives of various conservation groups, to provide insights on what's working in the field to help farmers operate sustainably from both an economic and environmental angle," says Mike Komp, CTIC's executive director. "We also bring together participants fro ... more. |
DIG DEEP INTO CONSERVATION PRACTICES ON CTIC'S CONSERVATION IN ACTION TOUR, AUG 20-21
The Conservation in Action Tour on August 20 and 21, organized by the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), will give participants a chance to dig deep into a wide range of conservation farming practices, including constructed systems such as wood chip bioreactors, saturated buffers ... more. |
Terry Tindall of J.R. Simplot and CTIC board chair says CTIC's tours have built a nationwide reputation over the years for providing an up-close look at conservation systems in the field, and also for creating opportunities for outstanding networking.
“I am very pleased with how the plans have come together for the CTIC 2019 Conservation in Action Tour," Tindall says. "These tours balance local conservation practices with a natio ... more. |
Bayer CropScience, The Mosaic Company, Syngenta and the Conservation Infrastructure Initiative co-led by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) and the Iowa Association of Water Agencies (IAWA) have signed on as a Diamond-level sponsors of the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) Conservation in Action Tour. The tour, which will be held August 20 and 21 in Des Moin ... more. |
... bioreactors, interseeded cover crops, stover harvesting, drainage water management techniques, and precision application of fertilizer. The tour also includes lunch at New Century FS and dinner and a keynote speaker at Jester Park Lodge in Granger, Iowa.
Bayer, Mosaic and Syngenta have sponsored previous Conservation in Action Tours. The joint IDALS-IAWA initiative signed on this year specifically to expose tour participants from around the country to conservation systems being employed in Iowa.
The Fertilizer Institute has signed on as a Platinum sponsor.
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Registration Is Open for Aug 20-21 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour in Iowa
Online registration is open for CTIC's 12th annual Conservation In Action Tour, which will include a packed program of farm visits, facility tours, informative presentations and an up-close look at real-world conservation practices in central Iowa on August 20-21. The Conservation at the Leading Edge tour will begin the afternoon of Tuesday, August 20, with a keynote speaker and social reception at the beautiful World Food Prize Hall of Laureates in downtown Des Moines.
&n ... more. |
Register Online
Online registration is open for CTIC's 12th annual Conservation In Action Tour, which will include a packed program of farm visits, facility tours, informative presentations and an up-close look at real-world conservation practices in central Iowa on August 20-21. The Conservation at the Leading Edge tour will begin the afternoon of Tuesday, August 20, with a keynote speaker and social reception at the beautiful World Food Prize Hall of Laureates in downtown Des Moines.
Watch the CIA Tour Invitation video
Wednesd ... more. |
... of a multinational agrichemical company, a farmer, a university professor and an EPA official talking about what you're seeing on the ground. It's a remarkable experience."
Tim Palmer, an Iowa farmer who serves as president of the National Association of Conservation Districts and co-chair of CTIC's tour planning committee, adds, "I've made friends on these tours that I still keep in contact with."
Wide Range of Speakers
At the tour stops, the group will gather perspectives from farmers, conservation planners, crop consultants, drainage experts and researchers. Stops will include:
Couser Cattle Company in Nevada. The Cousers are pioneers in corn stover harvest and utilization, manure management and precision ... more. |
The Conservation In Action Tour keeps growing! On May 31, 2012, nearly 250 participants gathered in the Mississippi Delta to meet and learn from farmers who face unique challenges in water quality, herbicide resistance and wildlife management. The Tour, organized by CTIC and partner Delta F.A.R.M., highlighted innovative conservation practices that producers and partners implement to pr ... more. |
... annual Conservation in Action Tour will bring more than 200 conservation-minded participants to Des Moines on August 20-21, 2019 for an up-close look at conservation practices in the field. The tour's theme, Conservation at the Leading Edge, emphasizes both edge-of-field systems as well as cutting-edge practices such as prairie strips.
"CTIC's Conservation in Action Tours are always a great way to not only see conservation practices in real-world settings and talk to the people who are implementing them, but also provide a unique opportunity to spend the day with people you wouldn't ordinarily get to walk around a farm with," says Tim Palmer, who is co-chairing the Conservation in Action Tour planning committee with fellow CTIC board member Peyton Harper. ... more. |
... nutrient removal by the alternative crops, and the use of the perennials in holistic management of the agricultural landscape.
Demonstrations of key conservation practices and products, illustrating concepts such as nutrient use efficiency and the proper applications of the 4Rs of Nutrient Stewardship.
Heightened awareness of water quality issues, augmented by watershed project field tours and a series of speaking engagements throughout the country by project leaders.
A CropLife webinar brought project details and conservation messages to a nationwide audience of 125 participants.
CTIC disseminated information from the project throughout its six-year funding period, organizing summer field tours, winter producer meetings, and other speaking opportunities. CTIC also worked wi ... more. |
... will show how conservation practices installed on Indian Creek watershed farms will affect water quality.
Goal
Determine what water quality improvements result when 50-75% of producers and acres in a small watershed adopt comprehensive agriculture conservation systems over a six-year period.
Activities
Outreach activities include field tours, public meetings, email and website updates, news releases and more.
On-farm demonstrations showcase the latest products, techniques, equipment and tools for resource conservation.With funding from USDA, CTIC will employ tile outlet monitoring to measure water quality.
CTIC and Livingston SWCD partner with Argonne National Laboratories to study the growth and wat ... more. |
... farming by the Spies family. With deep roots in the community and the eyes of Washington—and the world—focused on the Bay’s recovery, the farmers and fishermen of Maryland’s Eastern Shore are pushing conservation into a new era. Next year’s Conservation in Action Tour—CTIC’s 12th annual—will be held in the Des Moines area. Watch www.ctic.org/CIATours for details so you can mark your calendar and join us!
Conservation in Action Tour participants fill the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center.
Conservation in Action Tours provide a close-up look at BMPs.
Alex Echols of Ecosystem Services Exchange describes controlled drainage management systems.
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CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2018
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CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2009 |
CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2010
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CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2011 |
CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2012 |
CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2013 |
CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2014 |
CTIC Projects « Connecting People « CIA Tours « 2015 |
... Tour is hosted by CTIC with the support of our Tour Sponsors:
Evening Social
John Deere
Diamond
Bayer CropScience
Monsanto
Platinum
Dow AgroSciences
Syngenta
The Fertilizer Institute
Click hereto see a complete list of 2017 Tour sponsors.
Why attend the Tour?
This is one of the most well-organized multi-stop tours I've ever been on - I'm hoping to take some of your great ideas and implement them.
~Anonymous, 2016 Tour Participant
I loved every second of the tour. Networking and meeting new people, experiencing the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), learning new facts and being inspired by the passion of the EAA researchers and growers all contributed to making the tour an incredible experience ... more. |
The Soil and Water Conservation Society will hold their 67th annual conference in Fort Worth, Texas from July 22-25, 2012. This year's conference theme is "Choosing Conservation: Considering Ecology, Economics and Ethics" and will feature presentations, workshops, symposia, and technical tours to facilitate the sharing of resource conservation knowledge. In honor of our 30th anniversary celebration, CTIC will host a booth at the event.
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CTIC is having a party and you're invited! Join us on October 25, 2012 in St. Louis, MO, to help celebrate 30 years of conservation success and look at opportunities for continued growth. The October 25 celebration will be held at the Monsanto facilities in St. Louis will feature tours, panel discussions, an evening banquet and plenty of birthday cake.
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Ag producers mark your calendars for July 7, 2011. Attend one of two duplicate farm tours that day. The morning tour will leave First Baptist Church in Fairbury, Ill., at 9:30 AM central time. The evening tour will leave the church at 3:00 PM central time. The church is located at 701 North 7th Street, Fairbury, IL 61739-1595. Participants will meet at the church then board a bus to visit the tour sites.
Farmers and corporate sponsors at the sites will ... more. |
... Participants will learn more about the actions producers take to protect soil and water quality, plus possible generation and sale of these services, often measured with carbon or water quality “credits.”
Aerial view of Mainland Farm.
Photo courtesy of William and Mary Center for Archaeological Research.
“Our last two conservation tours received rave reviews,” said Tim Healey, CTIC chairman. “All who took part appreciated the chance to see conservation agriculture up close. The Conservation In Action Tour provides a forum to discuss today’s issues with producers who deal with them directly.”
Tour highlights include:
•A visit to Mainland Farm, an example of a typic ... more. |
... HOLOS, which
can be downloaded and used to estimate GHG emissions from farm. Will send link. Will be
closing organization in August 2009; will keep us posted.
PNDSA: Had close to 400 attend conference on Jan 21-22 in Kennewick, WA. Get sense that
lots of interest building in direct seed. Have 6 different breakfast meeting s in 3-state area; 30-40
people at each meeting. Planning spring tours. Rolling out grower-to-grower information
network, funded by small grant.
NTOP: NTOP conference on Jan 27-28 with more than 1,200 attend. More exhibitors than
ever and more first-time attendees. Speakers included Bill K, Jerry L, Moe Russell of Russell
Consulting (Iowa). Invited APPRESID to send person; Jose Moreno came and discussed
protocols of no-till certification program. Looking a ... more. |
... without an on-site inspection of the field. Drainage control structures cost between $500 and $2,000 apiece. Don Pitts of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service state office in Champaign, Ill., says retrofitting existing pattern tile drainage systems on an ideal slope can run $50 to $150 per acre. If extensive re-plumbing is required — for instance, to run laterals along the contours and make mains and control structures accessible along the field edge — costs can go up significantly, he says.
Bioreactor Grabs Nitrates From Drainage Water
Some drainage water management systems, including the demonstration plot on Tony Thompson's farm near Windom, Minn., are being augmented by experimental bioreactors, which use wood chips to c ... more. |
... areas where CTIC was promoting no-till agriculture. We win farmers as customers one at a time, and we were hoping that the affiliation with CTIC would give us more opportunity for direct contact with more producers.
Heretofore we saw the benefits of our CTIC membership in direct contact with producers, dealers and researchers during the summer CTIC Board of Directors meeting and affiliated tours, and we very satisfied.
Today there is an additional benefit, and we believe the greatest value of our CTIC membership. It is the opportunity to be able to participate as a partner in the EPA grant for Producer Partnerships to Reduce Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. We hope to be able to participate as a partner with CTIC in grants such as this in the future, too.
If you are a company tha ... more. |
